UNITED STATES—Our family has started a new challenge to kick-off 2023 to get our savings intact. Have you heard about the envelope challenge? You may have not because I honestly think it was something my aunt came up with out of the blue. When I first heard of it, I said, really? However, as we are about to enter into the third week of January, I’m saving money and I like it. Two weeks completed and I’ve already saved $33. The challenge forces you to force yourself to save money by paying yourself back.

It is pretty simple; you of course need envelopes, a total of 52 to be exact. You need a pen and that’s it. What you do is you mark each envelope with a number from 1 to 52. You might be sitting there asking what the hell does the 52 entail? It is the number of weeks in a year people. Each week, you will shuffle up the envelopes and randomly select one. Whatever envelope you select you place that amount of money in the envelope and stash it away people.

Now don’t cheat, when doing this. Close your eyes shuffle the envelopes and then select one randomly and that’s how much money you pay yourself for the week and put it away. If you don’t have the money in your possession the next time you go to the bank you retrieve those funds and you place them into the envelope. It is that simple and easy.

The goal is to save money for something at a later date. For me, it’s a great tactic for holiday shopping. I don’t have to worry about utilizing my checks near the end of the year and spending all of it on Christmas shopping. You can use what you’ve saved for a vacation that you’re looking to take in the following year. You can use that money saved up to pay off a major credit card or some debt. You can utilize those funds for a major purchase towards the end of the year, perhaps a refrigerator, a stove, a washing machine, a dryer, a TV, a luxury purse or pair or shoes, a piece of jewelry, the options can truly be endless people.

Perhaps you don’t want to make any purchases you just want to save money. If you haven’t figured out how much money you would save with the challenge the total amount is $1,378. That is a lot of money; it may seem like a little, but that is the key, a little here and there adds up over time. And guess what it does not require a lot of work; it is so easy that everyone in the family can participate. This is a good technique to help teach children how to save money and young adults as well.

Let’s face it finances, money, saving is something all Americans struggle with. You know why? Many are not taught the importance of doing it and they never learn simple methods that can help them master the importance of saving. You can talk yourself in the face until you turn blue about saving money, but if you don’t actually take action to do it, it does not matter in the long run.

Written By Jason Jones